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The 2016 Subaru Forester 2.5L gets ready to cross the Confederation Bridge from New Brunswick to Prince Edward Island. Photo shot at the west end of the Confederation Bridge in New Brunswick.
(Mark Richardson / For the Toronto Star)

The 2016 Subaru Forester 2.5L parks in front of the world's biggest lobster in Shediac, N.B.. (Mark Richardson / For the Toronto Star)

Next to the coast on Prince Edward Island, the 2016 Subaru Forester 2.5L is starting to get a little muddy. Photo taken in Victoria, P.E.I.
(Mark Richardson / For the Toronto Star)

TRURO, N.S. — You take the rough with the smooth here in the Maritimes. Vicious storms with sunny days. Poverty with wealth. Potholes and mud with smooth, clean tarmac. All of it’s near the Atlantic.

Which is why I’m here, driving a new Subaru Forester to discover the appeal of the region. Actually, driving several new Foresters. This is a road trip organized by Subaru, which also wants me to discover the appeal of its popular compact SUV.

The Subaru lineup can get a bit confusing, with the Crosstrek and Outlander jostling with the Forester for all-wheel drive utility. It makes sense if you remember the Crosstrek is the crossover and more like a station wagon, while the Outlander is the regular SUV and the Forester is the slightly smaller and lower, sporty SUV.

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The whole point of the Forester is it can cope with all conditions — the rough with the smooth — while adding some zip to the drive. So I jumped into one straight from the airport in Fredericton to find out if it’s true to the claim.

I set off along the scenic St. John River, which is one of the prettier regions of New Brunswick. Much of the province is filled with stumpy trees waiting to be turned into paper, but the river valley is all farms and islands, connected by winding roads with unexpected gravel and potholes.

This first car was the most basic of the available Foresters, with its older 2.5L four-cylinder boxer engine and a six-speed manual transmission. It was the Touring edition, which costs $29,995. You can spend $4,000 less on the cheapest Forester, but that won’t get as good a sound system, or seats as adjustable, or dual-zone climate control, among other things.

There are a few things improved for the 2016, including a subtly revised cabin and indicators that flash three times with one touch (welcome to the 21st century, Subaru). The steering-wheel controls are redesigned and the audio system is improved for better connectivity. As well, on some models, the individual fog lamps come on when you turn the wheel, to improve lighting around corners.

The manual transmission is one of the better gearboxes available, with very smooth shifting and well-considered ratios. It was lots of fun to hurry for the ferry back across the river, and the permanent four-wheel drive shrugged off the loose road surface whenever the asphalt stopped.

Most Foresters, however, are equipped with a Continuously Variable Transmission. It costs $1,300 extra in the 2.5L, but is the only transmission available for the more powerful 2.0L twin-scroll turbocharged XT model. This is because you have to have the CVT to get Subaru’s X-Drive system, which gives greater off-road versatility.

The next day, I drove a $37,995 2.0L XT Limited east through New Brunswick to the coast, splitting the drive between back roads and the Trans-Canada Highway. This is the most costly XT — the basic Touring model starts at $33,495.

The XT’s 250 hp engine was relaxed on the highway, though the 2.5’s 170 hp was also fine at cruising speed.

Claimed fuel consumption is about the same, with 9.4L/100 km combined for the XT compared to 9.6 combined for the six-speed 2.5. For both vehicles, I saw an actual average of 10.0.

My fuel consumption improved after lunch, now driving the 2.5L with the CVT. That belted transmission makes a big difference. Claimed consumption is 8.7 L/100 km, and my realistic average was 9.3.

I drove the third Forester over the Confederation Bridge and onto Prince Edward Island. The weather was damp, and the SUV quickly turned muddy from the red dirt of the island’s smaller coast roads, but the comparatively soft suspension and AWD was not fazed by the loose, rutted surface.

The challenge came on the final day, leaving P.E.I. on the ferry in another Forester XT, heading for Halifax airport. I took a detour to drive on some of the island’s “Scenic Heritage Roads.” These are dirt tracks from the last century that access farm fields through canopies of trees.

They also form deep puddles in the muddy shade. I switched to X-Drive to better control wheel slippage — effective up to 40 km/h — and splashed happily onward to the ferry.

Back on the mainland, now in Nova Scotia, time was getting on, and I switched the XT’s setting to “SI+”, which changes the six-speed mimicry of the CVT to an eight-speed. This offers closer ratios for a sportier drive, and lets you flick the steering-wheel-mounted selector paddles like a Formula One driver.

The road turned bad again. Another car later had a flat on the sharp stones, but the XT pressed on like a rally racer. It smoothed the rough roads and brought me here without incident, almost to the airport.

I’ll be home soon, probably still smiling. That’s what happens when you add some zip to the drive.

WHAT’S NEW FOR 2016

The 2016 Forester has a slightly redesigned and upgraded interior, and all models have improved steering-wheel controls. The infotainment system is easier to use, and includes a 6.2-inch touchscreen display with a rear-view camera. All models have either one or two USB ports, depending on trim level, for smartphone charging and connecting. Bluetooth connectivity with voice control is also improved.

One-touch signals are now standard, as well as sun visor extensions and a shark fin antenna.

Some trim levels now include welcome lighting, steering-responsive fog lights, and a revised proximity key fob. Limited editions have an upgraded audio system with seven-inch, high-resolution touchscreen, as well as Subaru’s new Map Update program, which offers a free annual navigational update for the GPS for three years.

PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND’S SCENIC HERITAGE ROADS

P.E.I. has 11 roads that are officially designated as “Scenic Heritage Roads.” They are unpaved and usually just a few kilometres long — old red-clay roads that linked farms to towns and people to their neighbours. Another five old roads are protected in a limited way, but not actually designated as Scenic Heritage Roads.

They’re preserved in much the same state as when they were first used more than 100 years ago, sometimes offering glorious vistas but often sheltered by canopies of trees that form a tunnel over the road. Native hardwoods, like red maple, sugar maple, red oak and beech combine with pine, spruce and hemlock. Ferns, mosses and trillium grow on the shaded ground, while wild flowers, such as daisies, black-eyed Susans, Queen Anne’s lace and lupins grow in open areas.

The purpose, according to the P.E.I. Department of Tourism, is “to provide the travelling public with an opportunity to travel on a road that reflects the ambience and scenery of yesteryear.” Many owners of adjacent land volunteer to preserve a strip of woodland or hedgerow. This maintains a buffer zone, so the canopies can thrive.

I drove on Jack’s Road, which was used in the early 1900s to access the farm of Jack MacPherson. The Department of Tourism describes it as “a narrow, winding trail where time seems to stand still — this rustic passage is a gentle reminder of simpler times past.”

Jack’s Road is nearly seven kilometres of one-lane track, though it’s open to traffic in both directions, and farm machinery sometimes uses it to access fields. Much of the road was dry and firm, but occasional large puddles kept out casual visitors. Farm fields were visible through the hedgerows to the west. Dense woods to the east provide a home to red fox, hares and muskrats, all of which stayed clear when I splashed though in the Forester.

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